In today’s Sunday cartoon episode of Calvin and Hobbes, a philosophical little boy and his toy tiger, Calvin ponder the morality of the universe. After not receiving a sign that he should not throw a water balloon at a little girl, he, of course, throws it. After she beats him up he wisely exclaims, “Why does the universe always give you the sign after you do it?” And there it is. Great theology and great philosophy all wrapped up in one insightful comment. While most religions espouse lists of taboos, real morality is nothing more than avoiding that which will produce negative results. God forbids us from stealing because the consequences are ruinous to us and society as a whole. The same goes for killing and each of His commandments. There is not one thing that God forbids that has a positive outcome. If it’s good for us God encourages us, within balance, to do it. Even good things in excess have bad results.
How sad that most of us don’t learn this until later in life when it is too late. After the damage is done we look back and say, “If only.” That combination of two words is one of the saddest in our language. What follows is usually a rueful description of an event that didn’t turn out the way we wanted. God is not some great avenger of sin. He warns. We disobey. We reap the harvest. Perhaps sermons should instead of being filled with hellfire and brimstone, focus on the art of logic and good thinking. Many years ago a Pogo cartoon showed a pond with a sign “No Swimming.” The last picture in the panel gave the reason. The water was poisonous.
Written by Roger Bothwell on July 30, 2012
Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574
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